Sensory Cognitive Interaction Laboratory

The Forgotten Sense – new book by Jonas Olofsson

The Forgotten Sense is a research journey through the uncharted territory of human olfaction – smell. After having been dismissed by scientists and philosophers for centuries, the human sense of smell was rarely fully recognized for its sensitivity or importance for human well-being and psychology. During the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of us lost the smell ability we had taken for granted. The experience, which was transient for the fortunate majority, made our sense of smell more appreciated. Few know how remarkably sensitive their noses are, and just how important the sense of smell is for our brain health, our sexuality, and our political views. In The Forgotten Sense, Jonas Olofsson, Professor of Psychology at Stockholm University and Principal Investigator of the SCI-LAB, takes the reader on a tour of our most essential sense, sharing insights gained through being immersed in the research on human sense of smell for over two decades. The book can be ordered via the Mariner/HarperCollins website.

“With intelligence and wit, a researcher raises our sensitivity to smell.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Highly readable and scientifically impeccable, The Forgotten Sense takes on topics ranging from whether human pheromones exist, links between olfactory disgust and political views, and what is revealed about someone’s health by both how good they smell and how well they smell. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.” —Robert M. Sapolsky, New York Times bestselling author of Determined

 

SCI-LAB organizes the SweCog conference!

SweCog is the acronym  for the Swedish Cognitive Science Society, where multi-disciplinary researchers meet and collaborate on issues of Cognitive science. From the website:

The aim of SweCog is to support networking among researchers in Sweden, with the goal of creating a strong interdisciplinary cluster of cognitive science oriented research within Sweden. In practice, we will arrange conferences and help with exchanges among Swedish universities with research in cognitive science.

This year the SweCog conference took place at Aula Magna on the Stockholm university campus, between October 10th – 11th, with Jonas Olofsson as the Head Organizer.

Read more here

Our vision,

is a scientific understanding of the mind and brain that is based on the interplay between sensory and cognitive processes. This understanding helps society by generating fundamental insights, innovation and clinical applications.

Our mission,

is to understand how meaningful human experiences are shaped by sensory- cognitive interactions. We aim to widen the perspective on human cognition by focusing on the interplay between cognition and the various senses. In particular, the unique cognitive- emotional properties of the chemical senses highlight the complementary sensory roles in human psychology. Our insights create value by benefiting knowledge, health, well-being and innovation in society. Our research incorporates new methodologies, and it is guided by our principles of novelty and creativity; theoretical depth; reliability and rigor.

Our research is generously funded by: